The present invention relates to the field of measurement and instrumentation, more specifically, a method for testing the operation a flow volume measuring device.
The measurement of the volume and the speed of the flow of gas is a function of the dynamic pressure of the gas flow. While a method to directly measure the dynamic pressure is not known in the art, it is known that that the dynamic pressure is the difference between the stagnation pressure of the gas flow and the static pressure of the gas flow. Therefore, current technologies measure dynamic pressure by measuring the stagnation pressure and the static pressure of the gas flow and using the difference to estimate the dynamic pressure. Current technology to measure the stagnation pressure and the static pressure comprises the use of separate pitot tubes to capture a sample of the gas flow as it passes a point and to measure the pressure of the captured gas using a pressure sensor.
The measurement of the volume and speed of gas flow is a critical parameter in many industries and failures of pitot based systems to accurately measure the stagnation pressure or the static pressure of a gas flow has in the past resulted in a plurality of unfortunate events. In many critical systems the procedures for checking pitot based measurement equipment often require the pitot based measurement equipment: 1) to be removed; to be bench tested using a pressure pump to inspect the pitot based measurement equipment for leaks; and then, 3) reinstalled after testing is completed.
Clearly, a reliable method to test pitot based measurement equipment without requiring removal from the equipment would be of benefit.